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(No Modjel.) Ill '7 G. W. KUCHLER & 11.. 0. FISCHER.

' CLASP.

No. 469,705. Pate'nted Mar, 1, 1892.

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Nrrn e STATES PATENT FFIGE.

GEORGE W. KUCHLER, OF YONKERS, AND HERMANN C. FISCHER, OF NE\V YORK, N.Y.

CLASP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 469,70 5, dated March1, 1892.

Application filed May 20, 1891.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, GEORGE W. KUCHLER, of Yonkers,in the county of\Vestchester and State of New York, and HERMANN O. FISCHER, of New Yorkcity, in the county and State of New York, have invented a new anduseful Improvement in Clasps, of which the following is a full, clear,and exact description.

Our invention relates to an improvement in clasps, and has for itsobject to provide a device of the caliper type, in which the free orclamping ends of the arms are normally held apart by a spring, and alsoto provide a locklever, in conjunction with the arms, capable of forcingthe arms to close upon material of varying thickness and lockin g themin such position.

A further object of the invention is to-pro- Vide a device of simple,durable, and economic construction and to so locate the lever that inthe smaller sizes of the devicesuch as is used for a garment-clasp, forinstancethe locking engagement may be COIIVBDlGIItlYBffGCtQd by thepressure of one hand.

Another object of the invention is to provide a means for opening theclasp capable of being manipulated at a point remote therefrom.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of theseveral parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth,

and pointed out in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar figures and letters of referenceindicate corresponding parts in all the views.

' Figure 1 is a central vertical section through the device,illustrating the arms in a locked position. Fig.2 is a similar sectionillustrating the arms as partially opened yet locked. Fig. 3 is avertical section taken, practically, on the 'line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4is a plan view, and Fig,,5 is a transverse section, on the line 5 5 ofFig. 1. '1

The device consists of two spring-pressed caliper-like arms A and B,pivoted at their upper ends and curved forwardly in direction of eachother at their lower ends, and a locklever D, pivoted in one arm andadapted to to engage with a cam-surface upon the oppo- Serial No.393,492. (No model.)

site arm. Each arm is preferably made in two sections 10 and 11, eachsection comprising a plate 10 and a marginal flange 11, formed upon theinner face of the plate, as shown in Fig. 2, the sections of each armbeing placed flange to flange and united by pins 12, bolts, 01' theirequivalents.

' The upper end of the arm A is provided with a recess 13 to receive thecorresponding end of the arm B. The pivotal connection of the arms isusually effected through the medium of a tubular pintle 14, secured atits extremities upon or to the outer arm A, the arm B being free to turnthereon. A bail 15, extending over the top of the device, is looselyfitted in the tubular pintle, the said bail being adapted for suspendingthe clasp, and the arms are normally forced apart by a spring 16. Thisspring mayv be of any approved pat tern. Ordinarily, however, acoilspring is employed, secured at one end to the pintle 14, aroundwhich it is wound, and at the opposite end the spring is secured to thebail or to the arm B, which latter moves freely upon the pintle, or theattachment of the spring may be effected in any other suitable orapproved manner.

A slot 17 is produced in the inner and outer side faces of the arm A byreducing the depth of the flanges, and a similar slot 18 'is formed inthe inner side face of the opposite arm B, the inner surface of thereduced flanges of the latter arm being a cam-surface, as shown at 18 inFig. 2, as said surface is curved somewhat eccentrically to the fulcrumof the lock-lever D, which lever is pivoted at one end at or near thelower end of the slot 17 in the arm A.

The lock-lever is curved in a manner that causes more or less of itsouter edge to extend beyond the outer side face of the arm A, even whensaid lever is in its locked position, as shown in Fig. 1. The free endof the lever is preferably enlarged to engage with the outer flanges ofthe arm B when carried in the locking position, as is also shown in Fig.1, and studs 19 project from the sides of the free end of the lever,adapted to travel upon the cam-surface 18*, as is illustrated in Figs. 2and 5. The lever is drawn upward, permitting the arms to spread apart torelease any material formerly clamped by attaching a cord or chain 20 tothe free end of the lever, which cord or chain is carried upward throughan opening 21 in the top of the device and beyond the top, and when thecord or chain is drawn upon the lock-lever is carried up to the positionshown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, permitting the jaws to open very wide,much more so than illustrated, and release the material with which theywere engaged. Thus, in operation, if the clamp is used as agarmentclasp, the arms being open, the material to be clasped is passedbetween the free ends of the arms by grasping the device by one hand andpressing the lever D downward, and the studs 19, traveling upon thecam-surface 18, will force the arms together and cause the material ofvarying thickness to be firmly bound between them, the arms being heldin this locking position firmly and securely by the lock-lever, owing tothe relation whichthe cam-surface '18" bears to the pivot-point of thelever.

It is obvious that the device may be utilized for clamping either heavyor light articles as occasion may demand.

Having thus described our invention, we claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent 1. A clasp consisting in two arms pivotedtogether at one end and curved toward each other at their opposite ends,a cam-surface along one arm below the pivot, a spring throwing the armsapart, and a locking-lever D, pivoted at one end to one arm below thepivot and having a sliding connection at its free end with the camportion of the opposite arm to close the'jaws when swung down, substantially as shown and described.

. Witnesses:

2. A clasp consisting in the pivoted spring- 0 closed arms havinglongitudinally-extending slots below the pivot, a cam-surface beingformed in one arm along the edges of its slot, and a locking-leverpivoted at one end in the slot of one arm, projecting atits opposite endinto the slot'of the opposite arm,'and having lateral projectionsengaging said cam-surface, substantially as shown and described.

3. A clasp consisting in the pivoted springclosed arms A B, the slot 17through the arm A. the slot 18 through the inner wall of the arm B, thecam-surface 18 along the walls of the slot, the curved locking-lever D,pivoted at one end in the slot 17 projecting at its opposite end intothe slot 18, and having lateral projections 19 engaging saidcam-surface, and the cord 20, connected with the free end of thelocking-lever and extending up, through, and out of the upper end of thearm B, substantially as set forth. 6o

4. A clasp consisting in the two pivoted arms, each formed of twosections secured together and provided with inwardly-projecting abuttingmarginal flanges, the flanges of the arm A being cut away between theirends to form the slot 17 and the inner flanges 11 of the arm B beingpartially cut away to form the slot 18, the cam -surface 18", and thecurved locking-arm D, pivoted in the slot 17 and projecting at its freeend through the slot 18 and having projections 19 engaging thecamsnrface 18, substantially as shown and described.

GEORGE W. KUCHLER. HERMANN C. FISCHER.

J. FRED. ACKER, G. SEDGWICK.

